Lost Memories
by Coollizard
Summary: Zelgadis has found his cure, at the price of losing all memories of the time he spent as a chimera. The life he finds - where reputation precedes him, where his friends are outlaws, and where the person closest to him is dead - isn't his. And someone wants it back.
1. Prologue

Zelgadis's hands shook as he lifted the tattered book from the chest. How many years had it been? How many leads, failed searches, moments of false hope? It was almost bizarre, just standing there, holding it, and even as he ran his fingers over the worn leather cover he could hardly believe it was real.

He, Lina, Gourry, and Amelia had been traveling together for quite some time when the news had reached him: a bandit gang was rumored to posses a piece of the Clair Bible. Of course they all had had their doubts, given the smiling, purple haired source of the information, but still, a lead was a lead.

So they had tracked the bandits, fought off the occasional monster or bounty hunter, and drove them off from their meager camp.

And meager it was, consisting of only a few tents, a fire, and a dank cave. As soon as they saw it, they knew the lead was false. Still, they had come all this way; searching the camp thoroughly was the least they could do.

But the cave was deeper than it looked. Full of paths and corridors it twisted and turned and branched off again and again, its chambers littered with pottery, its walls inscribed with ancient runes the bandits couldn't possibly have written. And when, at the center of it all, they'd broken down the stone doors, there was all they had searched for and more.

The hall was gigantic. In the center was a fountain: a bubbling spring in the rock encircled in black marble, with runes inlaid in silver. The walls were streaked with azurite, and swirling designs of opal and mother of pearl danced around the chamber. And riches literally littered the floor.

The others gawked.

Then smiled.

Then laughed.

Piles upon piles of treasure: ancient, priceless, and glimmering. There were crowns made of gold so pure that you could bend them with your hands, and diamonds big enough to juggle. Magical amulets, gem stones, mountains of coins, both current and antique, and enough ornate weapons to fill a small armory.

The hall echoed with the curious clinking sound of metal on metal and stone, and the occasional yelp of delight as yet another item was unearthed, or yet another scroll discovered.

Zelgadis ignored them.

There was one thing in this room which interested him, and one thing alone. He'd known it the instant he'd laid eyes on it. The symbol was impossible to miss, and to someone who had grown up seeing it constantly, unmistakable.

There, at his feet, lay a simple wooden chest, unadorned save by the stylized letter R carved into its lid.

"Zel. . . is that?"

He weighed the parchment in his hand, carefully opening the battered cover. "No. . . not the Clair Bible. At least I don't think so. But. . . I'm almost sure it's what I've been looking for."

"Really? How can you tell?"

"Look."

Opening the cover of _Transmutations and Chimeras_, Zelgadis shakily pointed at a small note, illegibly scrawled at the bottom of the cover page.

* * *

_Rezo,_

_Here's the compiled work you've been __looking for. _

_Happy Birthday!_

* * *

"By the gods. . ."


	2. Tempest

The day was perfectly clear, with no wind to speak of in the little outcropping. It was a little warmer than expected, although not hot enough to be considered unpleasant. A bird chirped somewhere nearby.

"Hmm... The center pentagram is a little crooked, Zel. Move the bottom right a little back– There! Perfect!"

"Technically, it's a hexagram, Lina." Zelgadis said, stepping out of the array to admire the group's handiwork.

It was quite an impressive job. Traced painstakingly in the dirt were three concentric circles, a series of runes running between them. At each of the cardinal directions there was a large, unfamiliar symbol, and in the center was a six-pointed star. Various objects were placed at each corner of the hexagram, and at its very center was an image of the sun.

Gourry whistled. "Wow. This thing looks complicated."

"Just wait until you see the ritual..." Lina made a face. "This spell's a nightmare, Zel. It's archaic as hell, and there are like three full pages of incantation!"

"Speaking of which," said Amelia, "who's reading the spell, me or Miss Lina?"

"Even though the spell needs a white mage present, it's formulated more like black magic." Lina sighed. "It'll probably be easier if I just read it. Go stand on the other side of the array."

Gourry turned. "We're starting it now?"

Lina shrugged. "Might as well. Zel, you should probably go stand on the sun."

Zelgadis nodded excitedly, and headed to the center of the hexagram.

Lina glanced up briefly at the sky; there was not a cloud to be seen. They really couldn't have asked for a better day.

She sighed again.

"I know it's probably silly of me to ask this, but... You sure you want to go through with this, Zel?"

Zelgadis almost laughed. "Of course I'm sure. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Well..."

"What if something goes wrong, Mr. Zelgadis?" Amelia fidgeted nervously on her side of the array.

"Yeah," Gourry chimed in. "If it doesn't work at all, that's one thing, but what if it works part way? Like, what if this spell gets rid of your human side instead of the other one? Or what if it separates out the golem and brau demon, but you wind up stuck together like conjoined twins?"

"That's a little much, Mr. Gourry..."

"I'm grateful for your concern, but I really don't think there's anything to worry about. Not only was this book Rezo's, but I'm fairly sure I even found the spell he used to turn me into a chimera. If there is a cure at all, it's got to be this." Zelgadis smiled. "Besides, this spell was listed as_ 'A ritual to restore a chimera, in body, mind, and spirit.' _That's about as straightforward as they come."

"Well, alright then!" Lina positioned herself in front of the array, the leather-bound book held firmly in her left hand. "Let's get this show on the road!"

"All ready over here!"

Lina took a deep breath, eyeing the weathered pages carefully. _Well,_ she thought_, here goes..._

The air seemed to still as she began the incantation.

_"Lady of the darkness,_

_ Lonely beyond measure,_

_ We call upon thee asking of thy power._

_ Lord of the light_

_ Awash upon the sea,_

_ We call upon thee asking of thy mercy."_

There was a slight intake of breath from Amelia; her side of the array had begun to glow slightly with white magic. Lina stepped forwards into the first circle, her own magic coiling around her ankles.

_"We stand before thee two,_

_ Opposite and yet one,_

_ Born out of thy essence._

_ Let our power flow together,_

_ And call upon thee as in the beginning."_

She stepped into the second circle carefully, as the magic energy surrounding them increased.

_"Golden lord who has suffered silently for all eternity,_

_ We swear before thee,_

_ And offer to thee our tribute."_

As she stepped into the third circle, the objects placed around the hexagram vanished. The energy within the circle increased yet again, and suddenly Lina was worried. The ritual was no where near complete; it was bizarre that the magic level within the array was this high already.

_"Before us stands one who is made of more than one,_

_ One who wishes to become what he once was yet again."_

She stepped into the center portion of the array, facing Zelgadis.

_"We ask that thou restorest him to what he once was,_

_ And takest from him what he no longer desires,_

_ And in return, we will give to thee what he does not want._

_ Let the aspects of his being which he rejects leave him,_

_ And let them instead flow into thee,_

_ Thou who art always alone,_

_ And let them remain at thy side_

_ For all eternity."_

This was the part Lina was unsure about. The next piece of the ritual required a fresh drop of the chimera's blood, which, due to Zelgadis' body, might be rather difficult to obtain. Luckily, Zel had been thinking ahead of her. Using the enchantment on his sword, he made a small cut on his palm, and held his hand out to her. Lina nodded in silent thanks, continuing the incantation without a pause.

_"With this blood, he signifies his true desire,_

_ Upon his own flesh he has marked his commitment._

_ Let this be a sign between all present that he does this willingly,_

_ And gives up part of his being unto thee_

_ Without force or coercion,_

_ His gift complete and permanent."_

A drop of Zelgadis' blood rolled off of his hand, hitting the array with a frightening hiss.

_"Let the chimera which stands before you become one once again;_

_ Take from us the power needed,_

_ And restore him in body, mind, and spirit!"_

The array flared into life, shining brightly even through the mist of magically energy surrounding them. Lina felt the familiar drain, and waited expectantly for the spell the come to an end.

But the magic wasn't winding down. The power swirled around them, growing faster and faster with each passing moment. Lina's breaths came harder as she felt her magic being pulled out of her. At the other side of the array Amelia wobbled a little.

The energy surrounding them whirled chaotically, and with a new underlying violence. It was all Lina could do to remain standing, and she gasped as still more of her power was syphoned away from her and into the spell. Zelgadis dropped hard to one knee, his face pale.

_It's too much_, she realized suddenly. The spell was draining everything they had and it hadn't even reached its peak. The magic was too thick to see through now, and it whipped around with no sign of slowing.

There was a thump as Amelia hit the ground. Lina tried to call her, but the words were wrenched out of her throat as still more of her magic was pulled into the spell.

_She can't keep this up! This level of magic drain will kill her!_

Lina turned around her, looking vainly for some sort of support. The spell was too far gone to stop now; if she tried, Lina would probably do more harm than good.

_But if I don't do_ something...

A stone hand closed firmly on her arm. Looking down, she saw Zel, his breathing harsh and irregular, his teeth gritted in pain.

"Lina! We have to stop this; Amelia can't take it!"

Lina shook her head. "I can't! The spell has too much momentum!"

They were practically screaming over the maelstrom, the magic tearing at their bodies and clothes.

"We have to do _something!_"

"I know that!" Lina's thoughts churned frantically. They couldn't stop the spell, meaning whatever magic it required would be taken from them no matter what they did. But maybe if the_ total_ magic was the same...

_"Lord of Darkness of the Four Worlds_

_ I call upon you_

_ Grant me all the power that you possess!"_

The Talismans glowed brightly, and Lina felt the pull of magic shift slightly, pulling from her instead of from Amelia.

Zelgadis' death-grip on her arm loosened, then fell away altogether.

"Zel!"

The magic was too thick now for her to even see her own hands, much less him. Every breath she drew tore at her throat; the magic in the air cracked hard around her. The spell tore still more magic from her chest. And more. And more. Lina lurched.

_Even with the Talismans?_

The world spun. She staggered, the wind whipping her around like a doll. It was all she could do to stay conscious as yet more magic wrenched it's way out of her and into the storm.

Her breathing was ragged, her sight dim.

_We can't go on like this!_

And suddenly, the wind was slowing. Slowly, ever so slowly, the magic in the circle faded. Light seemed to return as the world stopped spinning, the clouds of magic dissipating in the midday sun.

A bird chirped overhead.

"Lina!" shouted Gourry, running over to her. "Lina, what happened? Are you okay?"

Lina got to her feet shakily, almost giddy with relief. "Yeah... I think I'm fine, now."

Amelia was already getting up.

_Thank the gods..._ Lina thought, and practically collapsed in Gourry's arms.

"Miss Lina! What happened to you Miss Lina?"

"Hmm..?" Lina was confused for a moment. With exhaustion setting in like this, it was entirely possible she was mistaken, but shouldn't she be more worried about Amelia?

"Miss Lina, your hair's white!"

That got her attention. Looking down, she saw that Amelia was right; her hair had indeed turned white.

"Wow... Was that spell suppose to use up that much of your power?

"I didn't think so. Zel seemed pretty surprised too..." She jolted up suddenly. "That's right, Zel! We have to go make sure he's okay!"

She tried to get up, but both Gourry and Amelia stopped her.

"Hold on Lina. You're in no shape to go running around."

"That's right. We'll all go check on him together!"

With Gourry's and Amelia's help, Lina made her way over to the center of the clearing. The array was gone; only the faintest outline of the innermost circle remained. Zelgadis lay in the center, his form twisted in the dust.

"Zel? Zel!" Lina moved to him, then drew back with a startled gasp. Instead of bluish rocky flesh, his face was pinkish and pale. Where there had once been razor sharp wires, there was now nothing but soft black hair. His eyes fluttered once, then opened, revealing not the hard steely eyes she had grown accustomed to, but something undefinably softer.

"You're..."

He looked at her, then Gourry, then Amelia, his gaze not quite focusing on any of them as he got to his feet.

"Mr. Zelgadis... You're human..."

Something flashed across his face. Surprise, relief, disbelief? It was impossible to place.

Suddenly, he fell, his body collapsing out from under him as he tumbled into the dust.

"Mr. Zelgadis!"

Amelia rushed towards him, barely catching his shoulders before his head hit the ground.

He looked at her again, confused.

"Who... are you..?"

And with that, he passed out.


	3. Awakening

The mood was anxious at best. Gourry's eyes traced randomly over some fascinating bit of the inn wall. Amelia fidgeted first with her bracelet, then her hair, then her bracelet again. The clock on the wall ticked mechanically.

The inn quite nice, to be honest. The rooms were cheap, the food was above average, and, as of yet, no one had tried to chase them out. The plan had originally been to camp in the woods and hike into town the following day; given the short notice, they had done fairly well in finding a place for the night.

Needless to say, no one present had their minds on the living arrangements.

Lina drummed her fingers on the dinning table.

"...Miss Lina?" Amelia asked hesitantly, breaking the silence. "What... should we do about..."

"About Zel?"

Amelia nodded, and switched to fiddling with her choker.

"Wait for him to wake up; what else?"

"What if Mr. Zelgadis, you know... doesn't wake up?" Amelia's eyes were fixed firmly on the floor.

"Come on! It's Zel; he'll be fine." Lina forced a look she hoped seemed more confident than she felt.

"...I guess."

The room drifted back into a tense silence. Gourry scratched at the table absentmindedly. Amelia went back to fiddling with her bracelet.

The clock chimed dully, the metallic sound echoing in the quiet of the room. Dong. Dong dong dong. Dong dong dong. Dong dong dong dong dong. Midnight.

Lina yawned. "Alright... I'm gonna go hit the sack. Amelia? Gourry?"

Gourry nodded. "Yeah, I guess we should all be getting to bed..."Amelia didn't say anything.

He stretched, then stood with a yawn and headed off to his room. "'Night, guys. I'll see you in the morning."

"G'night."

Lina started after Gourry, then paused.

"...Amelia?"

Amelia started. "...Hmm?"

"Do you want to check up on Zel? He's got his own room; you could peak in there for a while if you want. I won't tell."

"I–... Are you sure that's okay, Miss Lina?"

Lina smiled. "Sure. But that means I get first choice of beds, got it?"

Amelia nodded. "Thank you, Miss Lina."

"No prob. See you in the morning!"

"Goodnight."

Lina yawned again and started off. _In the morning, this will all look ridiculous,_ she thought, vaguely. _Zel'll wake up, and probably make fun of us for making such a big fuss, and then we'll all head off to Saillune together... maybe pick off a few bandits on the way. Oh, and get some food..._

She opened the door to her room with another yawn.

_Because really, that's what it always is. Kill some bandits, cast some spells, eat some food... save the world now and again..._

_As long as it all blows over in the morning. And it always does, so really, we're just fine._

_We're just fine..._

* * *

Zelgadis blinked, turning his head away from the blinding streams of morning sunlight.

_Too early... _he thought, and, closing his eyes again, rolled over and used his pillow to block out the sun. _...the girl there's still sleeping, anyways..._

His eyes shot open.

Where _was_ he?

Zelgadis sat up cautiously, glancing around him. The room he was in was small and unfamiliar. Wooden walls, a bed, a dresser in the corner: an inn, probably. There was a girl asleep nearby, her head resting on the bed.

Why was he in an inn? He fumbled momentarily for his sword, then stopped, confused. He thought he remembered having his sword with him... No; he was certain that he had had it just moments before. But he had just woken up; why on earth would his sword be in his bed?

_Nothing ever makes sense in the morning, does it?_ he mused, massaging his temples. He had a pounding headache.

Carefully, so as not to wake the sleeping girl, Zelgadis got up.

He was already fully dressed, he noticed, and in travelers' clothes.

_Hmm..._

The girl on the bed stirred, and Zelgadis, curious, walked around to her. Her sleeping position looked rather uncomfortable, and her eyes were red and puffy from crying.

_Should I move her?_ Zelgadis wondered. _No, that would probably wake her up. And if she wakes up in my bed she might think... _

_She might... think..._

Honestly, he had no clue what she'd think. The girl, like the rest of the room, was completely strange to him. It was more than a little disconcerting, actually, and Zelgadis was beginning to feel unnerved by the whole situation.

_Well, first thing's first: I better figure out where I am and how I got here._

He took a breath, then made his way out of the the inn room, closing the door behind him with a gentle click.

The hall, which was empty and virtually silent, forked a few rooms down. Zelgadis chose a direction at random, and headed off without much of a plan. If he found someone, he could ask them where he was and (hopefully) get a straight answer. If not, well... at worst, he would wander around aimlessly and have some time to mentally retrace his steps and figure out what was going on.

There was a sudden crash from a room to his right. Zelgadis cracked the door open and peeked in curiously. It was a kitchen, and a girl (who he took to be another lodger) had apparently gotten into a rather heated argument with the cook. The cook, a portly man with a greying beard, gestured wildly to a number of empty pots overturned on the floor, shouting incoherently at the girl. The girl, meanwhile, shouted right back at him, and a good deal louder. Zelgadis decided it would be best not to get involved and closed the door again, wincing slightly as something else hit the floor with a clang.

_No help there..._ he thought as he started off again.

He didn't see anyone else up and about, and it wasn't long before the hall ended and he found himself alone in the entranceway. Light filtered into the room from the front window; it looked like a beautiful day. Zelgadis opened the wooden door and stepped confidently outside, but hesitated at the doorstep.

Really, he supposed, it would be best if he stayed put. It didn't seem like he was in any danger at the inn; that much might not be true if he went blindly wandering around. Besides, what could he do if he did go out? He had no idea where he was, why he was there, or how he should go about getting back to wherever it was he should have been. If he waited around inside he'd at least have the crying girl to ask when she woke up. Certainly, that was the sensible thing to do.

Laughter drifted about; a small group of children was playing in the street as the square came alive around them. The smell of fresh bread mixed with the cool, crispness of morning air, and the sky was cloudless and bright.

_Oh, screw it,_ Zelgadis thought. _I never was one to just wait around._

* * *

Amelia came barreling into the dining hall, out of breath and talking far to fast to be coherent. Ordinarily Lina would have found this annoying, but Amelia had also come barreling into Gourry, meaning that Lina had a chance to snatch up the rest of his potatoes.

"Oh, hey Amelia! You're up."

"Miss Lina! Miss Lina, bad news!"

"Ehnm?" she asked, through a mouthful of potatoes.

"It's Mr. Zelgadis!"

"Zel?"

It was at about this point that Gourry noticed his sudden lack of potatoes.

"Lina! I was going to eat those!"

"Well, too late now. I guess you'll just have to– HEY!"

Gourry neatly skewered two of Lina's sausages, and popped them into his mouth.

"You give those back!"

"Tu laat noow."

"Why you–!"

Conversation quickly gave way to an assorted mix of fighting, food-grabbing, eating, fighting while eating, eating while food-grabbing, food-grabbing while fighting, food fighting, and threats of imminent magical destruction.

"_Miss Lina!_"

"Hm?" Lina looked up, allowing Gourry to gobble up what was left of her eggs.

"It's _Mr. Zelgadis!_"

"What about Zel? Is he up?"

"I don't know!"

"What do you mean you don't know?" demanded Lina. "Either he's up or he's not; which is it?"

"B-but Miss Lina," sputtered Amelia, "He's gone!"

"Gone?"

"I woke up this morning, and he wasn't there!"

"...Was he in the bathroom?" asked Gourry, pausing in his devouring of Lina's food for just long enough to speak clearly.

"No! He wasn't!"

"You went into the men's room?"

"_No!_" yelled Amelia. Then, quieter and a little sheepishly, "I waited around for half an hour. When he didn't come back, I knocked on the bathroom door and asked if he was in there."

"Was he?"

"Of course not, Gourry; if he was, she wouldn't have said he was missing."

"Ah... You gonna eat that?"

"Mr. Gourry, this is _serious!_ What if Mr. Zelgadis was kidnapped?"

"Zel?" Lina snorted. "I'd feel bad for the kidnappers."

"Well... But he's not a chimera anymore! And the spell might have drained his strength!"

"I think you're reading too much into this, Amelia," said Lina.

Gourry shrugged. "Yeah, he's probably just out on a walk, enjoying his new body or something."

"But..." Amelia bit her lip, and sank deflatedly into a nearby chair. "B-but..."

Lina sighed. "Alright, alright! We'll go look for Zel! Just gimme a second to finish my eggs."

"...About that."

"_GOURRY!_"

* * *

Zelgadis wandered aimlessly through the bizarre, taking in the sights and smells and sounds. The streets were draped in color and noise. Men and women called out their goods and prices to anyone passing by; here was a fishmonger:

"Fresh trout, cheap and fresh! Crabs and scallops! Just caught this morning!"

Here, a draper and haberdasher:

"New silks from the east! Buttons and thread! Wools of all colors; cottons of all shades!"

Here, a confectioner:

"Fudge! Liquorice and drageé! Would you like a chocolate, lady? Sweet like you~"

And here, a piper, his simple tunes dancing round the crowds and stalls.

Zelgadis tossed a coin into the man's hat, earning a smile, and a nod of thanks. He had always loved open-air markets, and it was a gorgeous day to be out and about.

_Now if I can just figure out where I am and how I got here..._

"Excuse me," he said, tapping the shoulder of a passerby. "Do you know where this is?"

"Eh?" The shopper, a very elderly gentleman, turned, and looked him up and down suspiciously. "You makin' fun o' me, boy? Think I don't know where I am?"

"Oh–" Zelgadis inwardly chided himself for the ambiguous phrasing. "No, sir, not at all. I'm just not sure where this is, exactly, and I was hoping you could tell me–"

"Same place it always been. Now bug off!"

The man shrugged past him and disappeared into the crowd. Zelgadis sighed.

"Honestly, how hard would it have been to point me to a map?"

There was shouting to his left, and Zelgadis turned to see what the commotion was about. A girl (he recognized her vaguely as the same one who had been yelling at the inn cook) was pushing her way past the crowd, much to the annoyance of the other shoppers.

"Hey! People are walking here!"

"You better pay for that flour you made me spill!"

"Yeah, yeah; whatever. Walk a little faster, would ya'? Coming through!"

"Watch it lady!"

"My foot!"

_...Is she always that antagonistic?_ Zelgadis wondered, stepping carefully to the side of the road. He certainly didn't want to cross paths with her if he could help it.

As the girl got closer, he noticed two other people trailing behind her. One, a confident looking young man, seemed to be a mercenary, or some kind of armed escort.

_Which explains how she can get away with pushing past people like that,_ he thought with a grimace. _Honestly, some people._

The other, though...

She was shorter, and at first it was hard to see her through the crowd. While the first girl and her hired muscle pushed confidently through the other shoppers, this girl tread more carefully, and seemed acutely aware of the people around her.

"Hey! Try looking where you're walking!"

"I'm sorry. We're just in a bit of a hurry right now; if I could please just get past..."

"That chick pushed me!"

"I'm sorry, sir! I'm sure she didn't mean it. We're just–"

"Look, I'm not gonna just let some flat-che–"

"No! P-please don't say that! She's very sensitive about–"

"I'm very sensitive about _what?_"

"N-nothing!"

Something about her seemed familiar, although Zelgadis was sure he didn't recognize her voice. He craned his neck to see as the group got closer, but he couldn't quite get a clear view.

"Jeez, where is he?" asked the bodyguard, skimming the crowd.

"He can't have gone _too_ far," declared the pushy girl in front. "It's only been an hour or so."

"It's only been an hour since we started looking, you mean," said the other girl. "Who knows how long he's been gone? Oh, just think what terrible things might be happening as we speak! We must find him and put his evil kidnappers to justice!"

The girl turned slightly as she said this, and Zelgadis finally caught a glimpse of her face. So _that_ was how he recognized her; she was the crying girl he had seem that morning.

Zelgadis sighed. He was probably going to regret this, but if anyone could tell him what was going on, it was probably her.

"You know, we don't know he was kidnapped."

"Yeah... No offense, but I think you're way overreacting here. Coming through; step aside!"

"But–!"

Zelgadis tapped her on the shoulder. "Excuse me..."

She turned slightly, then whirled around to face him.

"Mr. Zelgadis!"

"Well look at that, problem solved. I'll be getting back to the inn now..." The pushy girl turned and started to go; her bodyguard trailed after her.

The crying girl grabbed his wrist, and made to drag him along.

"Mr. Zelgadis, where were you? You had us all worried sick!"

The pushy girl coughed. "Some of us worried sicker than others..."

"Miss Lina! Don't try to say you weren't worried too!"

The pushy girl rolled her eyes.

The crying girl tried to drag him forwards again, and Zelgadis stopped her, although he decided not to pull his wrist free. "Um... I'm sorry, but I'm just a little lost. Have you seen Rezo around here, by any chance?"

The pushy girl stopped cold and turned sharply to face him.

"Rezo?"

Zelgadis nodded.

"As in Rezo, the Red Priest."

Zelgadis nodded again, this time more self-consciously. Something was suddenly very off with the group. Everyone had stopped, and was looking at him strangely. The crying girl had let go of his wrist.

"What's the matter with you, Zel? Don't you remember?" The pushy girl said it like a joke, but it sounded a little _too_ flippant. Her grin looked forced.

There was a sinking feeling in Zelgadis's gut. Something was wrong here. The way the bodyguard was looking at him... The way the crying girl _wasn't_ looking at him... That strange, stilted smile the other girl wore for some sort of joke he didn't understand...

And when she spoke again, his blood ran cold.

"...We killed Rezo."


	4. Collision

Zelgadis was on his guard instantly, hand reaching instinctively for a sword that wasn't there.

"What did you say?!"

The pushy girl's smile was fading fast.

"You were there, Zel. You saw me do it."

_'Me'? Not the mercenary? _

Zelgadis looked the pushy girl over again. Abrasive as she was, she was quite small and not particularly developed, physically. Not a fighter by any means. Perhaps she meant that she'd personally sent out whatever hired goon had done the job? But that was ridiculous; Rezo could never be killed by a mere thug.

"_Zel._" The pushy girl's voice came again, more insistently this time.

"No." Zelgadis shook his head. "No; you're lying."

"This isn't funny, Mr. Zelgadis." The crying girl was looking at him again, her gaze an accusation. "We were really worried about you! You should know better than to play jokes like this on your friends!"

_Friends?_

He looked the three up and down again. The mercenary looked reasonably strong; Zelgadis didn't want to have to fight him if he could avoid it. The crying girl seemed harmless. The way she addressed him worried him, but Zelgadis doubted she'd be capable of much in a fight. The pushy girl though...

Could she be a mage?

That would almost make sense: a jealous black mage looking to assassinate one of the Five Great Sages. But that was impossible too; how could _anyone_ kill Rezo?

"...I don't think he's joking, Amelia."

"Zel..."

She was lying. She had to be lying.

He turned, scanning the area. There were too many people to push past, to tight of a crowd to dart through. And even if he did make a break for it and lose them in the crowd, then what? He'd come here looking for answers, not a fight.

"Zel, listen. Shabranigdu; Giga slave; big boom. Remember?"

It didn't make sense.

_Why would she lie about something like this? What possible good could it do her?_

The crying girl reached out to grab his hand again, and he jerked back, almost violently.

"Mr. Zelgadis...–"

"Who are you people? What do you want?"

Perhaps he had spoken louder than he had intended to; here and there a head turned, and a few shoppers paused along their way to see what the commotion was.

"Zel, you know who _I_ am, right? I mean, come on, we spar and stuff."

The mercenary gave a strange sort of smile, scratching the back of his head almost playfully. His other hand was planted firmly on the hilt of his sword.

He took a step forwards, and Zelgadis stepped back instinctively.

"Gourry, back off."

"Oh, come on, Lina. He's Zel." Another step. "He couldn't just–

Zelgadis stepped back again, too far this time, and almost crashed into a passerby. A strong hand caught his upper arm as he fell, pulling him back.

"Jeez, Zel. You're crashing into things even more than m–"

"Get off of me!" He twisted out of the mercenary's grip.

"...Zel?"

"How do you know me?" He tried to step back again, but the crowd was growing too thick as more and more people stopped to see what was going on. "Where's Rezo?!"

"Zel, calm down."

"Stop calling me that!"

There was a tap on his shoulder, and he practically whirled around on the shopper behind him.

"...Excuse me, sir?"

There were too many people. The crowd pressed in tighter and tighter, and Zelgadis realized, suddenly, that he was completely defenseless. His sword was gone... It hadn't been around when he'd woken up. No, but he remembered having it. Before he'd gone to sleep? No... He didn't remember going to sleep at all. He was with Rezo and then–

_Rezo! What if they'd gotten the jump on us and taken my sword and..! But why the inn? And the girl? And the–?_

"Do you think it's like before? You know, when that priest guys was controlling him and stuff?"

"The possession only worked because Rezo turned him into a chimera. The spell should have undone all that."

_Damn, damn, damn! None of this makes any sense!_

"Mommy, why are people yelling?"

"Must be some of those traveler folks. Always getting into brawls up at the inn."

"Mr. _Zelgadis..._"

Forget answers. He had to get out of here.

Zelgadis turned to go, but the crowd had gotten too thick to push through. He barreled straight into a young lady, and barely had time to fumble over an apology before crashing headlong into someone else.

"Mister, are you feeling alright?"

"He's white as a sheet..."

"...Well, hang on a second, now–!"

This was bad. This was definitely bad.

Someone grabbed him, and he wrenched his arm free, turning to run.

_Damn. Damn, damn, damn..!_

Where was his_ sword?_

"Zel!"

He felt himself being repelled by the crowd, pushed back into the center. It was too loud. There were too many people, too many things to keep track of–

The pushy girl's lips were moving, but he couldn't hear what she was saying. The crying girl recoiled, shook her head... listened more closely.

"...before he completely freaks out."

"I don't... he won't be... the inn..."

Pieces of their conversation drifted past him, but he couldn't put them together. Something about... the girl. Or him. Or..?

The crying girl was nodding now, slowly. The other girl's hands were to her chest... In front of her chest... Palms towards him...

_A spell!_

He dodged haphazardly, crashing into people and goods. What spell had she fired? He couldn't even tell. If everything would just stop spinning..!

The bodyguard was there, blocking his way, hand on his weapon–

"Hold on just a–!"

Zelgadis lunged forwards in an instant, prying the sword from its sheath. He was there, ready in fighting stance, but the sword was too light... No, there was no sword at all; it was nothing but the hilt!

"Mr. Zelgadis..!"

_"EVERYONE CALM DOWN RIGHT NOW!"_

The words echoed over the cobblestone in a sudden wake of silence. A pause...

The pushy girl gave a self-satisfied smile.

"That's better! Now give that thing back to Gourry, Zel, before you hurt someone."

And everything breathed again.

He heard the clatter of the empty hilt hitting the pavement before he even felt it drop. He tried to ask who, what, _why_, but somehow, the words had just left him.

"I... Are you..? That..."

"Come on guys. Let's get back to the inn," said the pushy girl, sighing. "Sounds like we've got a lot to talk about."

* * *

"Here," the pushy girl said, gruffly slamming a mug of cheap ale down on the table in front of him.

"...I don't drink."

She snorted. "Trust me, Zel, coffee isn't gonna cut it for this one."

"I'm underaged..." he tried again, weakly, but was cut off as she yelled something at the innkeeper about 'food' and 'lots' and '_now_'.

The bodyguard gave him a sympathetic grin. "Just go with it."

Zelgadis sighed. "I don't even _like_ alcohol."

The bodyguard laughed. "Yeah, I know. But still, enjoy it while you can; Lina never buys drinks for people."

_Lina... The red-head, I'd assume? _Zelgadis thought to himself. _Surprisingly cute name for someone so abrasive._

Maybe he'd meant the crying girl instead.

_ But no, she doesn't seem like much of a 'Lina' either. Too... reserved. More of a 'Margaret', I'd guess. Or maybe a 'Rachel'._

He glanced briefly in her direction, and was greeted with the awkward realization that she had been staring at him. Their eyes met, and the girl turned away quickly, fixing her eyes firmly on her lap. Zelgadis wasn't quite sure which he found more unsettling: the odd glances she kept stealing his way, or the strangely guilty look she gave when she was caught.

"Alright!" announced the pushy girl, settling heavily in the chair across from him. "Tell me everything you forgot."

"I... Excuse me..?"

"Miss Lina, when you say it like that it's really confusing..." said the crying girl. "Don't you think we should, you know, explain things to him?"

"He's not any dumber, Amelia. This isn't Gourry we're taking about,–"

"Hey!" interjected the bodyguard.

"–so there's really not much we can explain that he doesn't already know."

"I guess you're right..." said the crying girl. She glanced at him again, and then looked back at her lap.

The red-head sighed. "But... then again, I guess it wouldn't hurt. As best as we can make out, Zel, you have amnesia. We're not sure how or why, so right now, the best thing you can do is give us some idea of how much you actually remember."

Zelgadis took a moment to take this in; it made sense, in a weird, surreal sort of way, but that didn't make the words any less unsettling.

"Well..." The three suddenly were all looking at him, listening with rapt attention. Zelgadis faltered. "I... What do you mean by... That is to say–"

The pushy girl sighed, and rubbed her temples. "Look Zel, I know this is probably kind of hard to take in–"

"It's not that," he said quickly. "No; actually, amnesia would explain a lot. Well, not really, not by itself, but it would help? Explaining things, I mean; not having it. And I suppose I'd sort of figured the same type of thing, at least when I was thinking clearly, or at least I'm sure I would have, and... I'm rambling, aren't I."

"Just a little," said the pushy girl.

Zelgadis took a breath to compose himself, and, when that proved not to be quite enough, glanced down at his mug.

_No... I'm still just a little on edge from the fight earlier; my nerves will be fine in a bit. And drinking's stupid regardless. Especially so if suspicious people like them handed you the drink._

It wasn't as though he actually thought they'd try to poison him, but still. Something about people who claimed to have killed a Great Sage just didn't sit well with him.

"Anyways," he continued, after a slight pause, "I'm just... not really sure what to tell you. I mean, if I do have amnesia, then... well, how am I suppose to know what I've forgotten? Short of just telling you everything I do remember so you can look for the missing bits, of course."

The bodyguard scratched his head. "Well, okay. Why don't you just do that then?"

"Idiot," said the pushy girl, bopping him on the head. "What do you want him to do, give us a play by play of his whole life story? We'd be here all week!"

"I guess if you put it like_ that_..."

"Hmm. Zel, are there any obviously missing sections you can think of?"

"What do you mean by obvious?"

"Any gaps. You know, lost time you can't remember. Memories that just don't fit. That sort of thing."

Zelgadis took a moment to think. As far as he could tell, all of his memories were completely normal. Sure, there were things in his childhood that were fuzzy or just plain gone, and he'd blacked out more than once, but that sort of thing was normal, wasn't it?

_No... Even so, there's still one very obvious thing._

"I remember walking with Rezo, fully concious," he said, finally. "And then, right after that, I remember waking up in this inn, wearing different clothes, with a girl I didn't know by my bed."

The pushy girl nodded once, sharply. "Well, there we go. You've lost at least three years worth of memories; probably more."

Something about hearing it said straight out like that was unsettling. No, unsettling wasn't the right word at all. Painful? Well, a little, he supposed, but not really. It probably would be when it had time to sink in, but right now... more than anything, he just felt numb. Like someone had just punched him hard in the chest and he was winded and knew it should hurt, but couldn't actually feel anything at all...

He took a swig of the vile brownish liquid in his mug, and immediately regretted it.

"Easy there, Zel," said the bodyguard, slapping him on the back as he went into a decidedly unpleasant coughing fit.

He felt the questions bubbling up again, all of them conflicting and half-formed and incoherent. But his throat was burning to much to ask, thankfully, and the pushy girl looked like she had already moved past the subject.

"So the way I see it, this could have been caused by two things. The first would be the spell we attempted yesterday, which would make complete sense. And that'd also make it really hard to fix this, so let's hope that it was caused by the second: namely, a mage broke into the inn sometime last night and erased Zel's memories."

"But... Miss Lina, why would someone do that?" asked the crying girl.

"My guess?" The pushy girl shrugged. "Probably someone is doing something vaguely evil, and they want us busy and distracted while they do it. Memory-altering spells aren't very draining, and they don't need to be maintained the way barriers do."

The bodyguard nodded. "So... What do we do?"

"We find the person who did it, and force them to reverse the spell," said the pushy girl. "Simple as that. And, as luck would have it, we've already got a lead. Zel, you said there was a girl in your room when you woke up?"

Zelgadis nodded.

"Do you remember what she looked like?"

He nodded again. "Yes, but..."

"Great. Did she have any distinctive runes or letters on her clothes? Was she carrying anything that looked like a charm or talisman?"

"Well... she had some bracelets that I guess could have been enchanted. She's right here, though, so I'm probably not the best person to ask."

Zelgadis gestured towards the crying girl, and was rather startled when he heard a loud and resounding _THUD_ from the pushy girl's side of the table.

"Miss Lina! Are you okay?"

The pushy girl banged her head on the table a couple more times for good measure, and then abruptly sat up.

"Okay, so I take it back; we don't have a lead after all. Gods, I should have seen that one coming."

The bodyguard cocked his head slightly. "But what about the girl who snuck into Zel's room?"

"There was no girl, you idiot. He woke up and saw _Amelia_."

"But... he said he didn't know her."

"Yes, because _his memory was erased!_" she yelled, bringing a fist down on the top of the bodyguard's head.

"Oh..."

The pushy girl sighed. "Alright, so Plan B. If we're lucky, we'll find some leads on who did this given a little time and digging. If we're _really_ lucky, the spell might even be temporary, and we won't need to. And if we're not, the best place we can go to to get this fixed is Saillune, which we'd probably head to next anyways. So I say, we stay here, finish checking out the cave, and then head back to Saillune with the loot and see if we can fix Zel then. Sound good?"

"But Miss Lina!" the crying girl said. "We can't just do nothing!"

"We're not going to do nothing. We're just not going to obsess over it right now."

"But that's just the same thing! What if Zel gets even worse? He could forget his own name, or how to eat, or–"

"That's not how memory spells work, Amelia."

"Well, we should at least search for the people responcible!"

"Like I _just_ said, right now we have no leads." One of the pushy girl's eyebrows was twitching rather impressively.

"Then we should just head back to Saillune right away! Honestly, Miss Lina, don't you even care about Mr. Zelgadis? You probably just want to explore the cave more so you can sell all the stuff when we get back–"

"Amelia!"

The crying girl abruptly stopped.

"I don't understand what's going on here any more than you do. It could be a mage. It could be a demon. It could be the spell we attempted, it could be the friggin' phase of the moon for all we know. So stop going into Justice Mode for three seconds and think about it. We can't just go blindly rushing around after people we don't know exist, we can't leave before we make sure that the cave had nothing to do with what happened, and we're not going back to Saillune until we're either out of options here, or sure that it'll help. Got it?"

"...Yes, Miss Lina." The crying girl seemed to almost visible shrink under the other girl's gaze.

The pushy girl sighed. "Tell you what. We stay here a week. If we don't find anything in that time, I promise we'll head straight back to Saillune. Sound good?"

The crying girl nodded. "Okay... Got it."

"Good." The pushy girl paused, and turned towards Zelgadis. "Zel, I think today's probably been exciting enough for you. Why don't you stay here in the inn for now. We'll go out and see what we can find around town lead-wise, you stay back and see if you can remember anything."

Zelgadis was almost ready to agree, but stopped himself short before he could open his mouth.

"...I don't trust you."

"Yeah," she said. "I know. So stay here and we'll talk more tonight."

At some level, Zelgadis knew that that was a completely terrible sell. There were so many reasons for him to distrust them, so many reason's he'd be at their mercy if he stayed. Honestly, did she think he was that naive? You don't go claiming to have murdered someone's mentor and only living relative and then expect them to stick around with you and do nothing. It was stupid, and she was obnoxious, and the crying girl was still sort of weirding him out, and there was absolutely _no way_ they could expect him to just go along with all of it–

And as he walked down the hall back to his room in the inn, he wondered what on earth had gotten into him.


End file.
